Cyril Xaba
Cyril Xaba has directed that Nigerians and other African migrants be moved to a screening facility for checks on their immigration status in South Africa.
The exercise, conducted on Thursday, saw buses transport foreign nationals from the Diakonia Centre in Durban’s central business district to a refugee reception centre where officials examined and processed their documents.
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The move comes amid fresh anti-immigrant protests in parts of South Africa, with some groups campaigning against the continued presence of migrants from other African nations.
Reacting to the development, Smart Nwobi said growing pressure from local residents contributed to the relocation.
He noted, however, that city authorities managed to stop the situation from escalating into unrest or violence.
South African media reports indicated that the verification exercise followed revelations that only two out of hundreds of migrants living in KwaZulu-Natal had valid residency papers.
According to eNCA, the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Home Affairs screened 457 migrants and discovered that only two were legally staying in the country.
The report added that the findings led Durban officials to begin similar checks on migrants sheltering in camps after fleeing threats from anti-foreigner groups.
Meanwhile, speculation has emerged that the recent killing of crime activist and traditional healer Thato Molosankwe may have fuelled the latest wave of anti-migrant protests.
Molosankwe was reportedly shot dead at his home in Lomanyaneng village in Mahikeng on Wednesday morning, with police launching a search for the attackers.
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